My Friend, the Superhero
by DebC75
Summary: Bobby runs into an old friend and discovers a secret


My Friend, the Superhero by DebC  
  
Author's Note: This is a crossover with the movieverses of X-Men and Spiderman.  
  
"My Friend, the Superhero"  
  
The city bustled with life. Cars of every make and model and trademark yellow taxicabs colored the streets, and the sidewalks teamed with people who pushed through the gawking groups of teens like they weren't even there.  
  
John almost dropped his lighter when someone stepped on his foot. In an instant, a flame appeared, and Bobby thought he was going to use it.  
  
"John! No!" The girl at their side admonished in a slow Southern drawl. "We aren't supposed to show off, remember"  
  
"I wasn't going to--"  
  
"John!" This time it was their chaperone speaking. "Put the lighter in pocket, please."  
  
Grumbling, the boy obeyed, but turned a glare to his two closest friends. Bobby smirked back. "We're here for the museum, not to torch the city." He was laughing.  
  
John mumbled something and scowled. "So, your friend lives here, right? The one you e-mail all the time."  
  
"Peter, yeah." Bobby had actually been hoping to see Peter while they were here, but New York City was a lot bigger than he'd realized. Well, he'd known it was huge. Hours of geography class had left him with a good working knowledge of the city's demographics, but learning about it in the school in quiet Westchester was nothing like seeing it from Times Square. Anyway he sliced it, though, Bobby doubted he was going to be seeing Peter Parker anytime soon.  
  
Scott and Jean--Mr. Summers and Dr. Grey on boring school functions--were handing out street maps and tour guides. "You three together?" Scott asked. Rogue nodded, and he shoved a map at Bobby. "After the tour, you're free to go anywhere you please until 3. pm. When we meet back at the museum." Scott's voice held a warning note to it. One that clearly said stay out of trouble.  
  
How hard could that be?  
  
xxx  
  
"Holy shit, run!"  
  
Stay out of trouble. Easy. Yeah. Except John had just lit some guy up like a torch. Okay, so the guy was a creepy mugger who'd just tried to snatch Marie's purse. John was only trying to stop him.  
  
And when Bobby froze the would-be mugger in huge block of ice, it had been to stop John from letting him burn to death.  
  
At Marie's insistence, they were running.  
  
A few blocks away, they stopped running to collapse on the grass of a small city park. It was more like a patch of grass with some benches. Not that it mattered. They were going to catch their breath and head straight back to the museum. No questions asked.  
  
Which Bobby was about to suggest when he got interrupted by a rather cryptic "Nice day for a jog."  
  
All three of them turned in the direction of the voice--behind the--and saw nothing, until Marie looked up, and pointed, stammering, to the top of the nearest light pole.  
  
Red and blue spandex. Masked face. Crouching atop the street light like it was as wide as a floor. Spider-Man. Bobby'd read about him on the Internet, but hadn't actually thought he was real.  
  
"It wasn't our fault!" Marie blurted out. "He was tryin' to take my purse."  
  
John had his lighter out in seconds, but a flick of the costumed figure's wrist sent a string of webbing to retrieve it.  
  
Bobby wasn't sure if he should be relieved or even more frightened.  
  
"You won't need this," Spider-Man reprimanded. "I saw what happened." He turned his head to Marie and then tossed some at her. "You dropped your purse. I figure if you went to al that trouble to keep that mugger form getting it, you wouldn't want to lose it now." He hopped down from the light pole and tossed John, whose mouth was now hanging open, his lighter.  
  
Bobby asked the first thing that came to mind. "Is he okay? The mugger, I mean?"  
  
The masked figure shrugged. "He'll live, once he unthaws. Willing to bet he'll think twice before attacking innocent teenagers again." He whirled to face Bobby. "That's some trick. I knew a kid who could do stuff like that once." And then he was gone.  
  
xxx  
  
It took Bobby almost the entire bus ride home to Westchester to figure it out. I knew a kid who could do stuff like that once, he'd said.  
  
The only other person he'd shared his secret before coming to Professor Xavier's school had been the best friend he'd left behind. Peter Parker.  
  
"So," Scott asked as he took the last soda from the cooler, handing it past Bobby to Marie. "You three have fun?"  
  
"Yeah," was the combined response from all three of them. Okay, so it really hadn't been fun, but at least he'd gotten to see Peter after all. 


End file.
